Undergraduate Course: Historical Linguistics (LASC10021)
Course Outline
| School | School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 3 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | Detailed introduction to descriptive and theoretical aspects of historical linguistics, covering phonetic, phonological, morphological and syntactic change with in-depth consideration of data from English and a diverse range of other languages and language families. |
| Course description |
This course introduces the type of changes that a language may undergo, at all levels of linguistic structure, and the theoretical frameworks that are available to discuss them. The course also looks at sociolinguistic influences on language change and the consequences of language contact including language convergence, creolisation and language death.
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Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | Visiting students should have completed at least 3 Linguistics/Language Sciences courses at grade B or above . We will only consider University/College level courses. |
| High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2024/25, Available to all students (SV1)
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Quota: 60 |
| Course Start |
Semester 2 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Lecture Hours 27,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
169 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
100 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
Assignment 1: 30%
Assignment 2: 55% (2500 words)
Course exercises: 15% |
| Feedback |
Not entered |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Recognise and describe common types of linguistic change in different domains;
- Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of key issues relating to current theories of language change;
- Accurately describe and analyse primary diachronic data;
- Apply their understanding of theoretical issues in analysing data;
- Proceed to independent study and research in historical linguistics.
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Reading List
Campbell, L. (2004, 2013, 2021). Historical Linguistics: An Introduction. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. 2nd, 3rd or 4th edition.
McMahon, A. (1994). Understanding Language Change. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
This course makes students aware of the malleability of language. Languages are never stable but ever changing; this brings home Saussure¿s notion of ¿the arbitrariness of the sign¿, i.e. the lack of an intrinsic relationship between a linguistic form (in oral languages, a specific sequence of sounds) and a particular meaning. Instead, meanings are attributed to forms purely by convention, and conventions can, and do, change. Even if meanings are stable, changes in linguistic forms happen in ways that are not random but shaped by other systems - by the limitations of the articulatory system, by acoustic effects, or, in the case of morphology and syntax, by human cognition. The course provides a survey of the various ways in which languages may change, which challenges ingrained, unquestioned, and often implicit beliefs that some languages or varieties are intrinsically better than others. Instead, languages or varieties will be seen to acquire prestige and status as the result of social and economic factors, rather than because of any intrinsic characteristics of the linguistic forms themselves. This may help students get a clearer sense of what drives their own reactions to hearing accents that are different from their own, and hence their judgements of other people that are based solely on their speech.
Core skills gained or developed on this course:
Challenging own perspectives and assumptions; Critical thinking; Critical analysis and evaluation; Data analysis and evaluation; Ethics and research ethics; Formulating original arguments and justifying it; Academic reading skills; Research skills; Understanding broader perspectives; Written communication; Writing clearly and concisely. |
| Additional Class Delivery Information |
Teaching Contact Time: 9 weeks out of 11 at 3 hours/week = 27 hours |
| Keywords | Historical linguistics; language change. |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Michael Ramsammy
Tel: (0131 6)50 3959
Email: M.Ramsammy@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Ms Susan Hermiston
Tel: (0131 6)50 3440
Email: Susan.Hermiston@ed.ac.uk |
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